Wichita eagle., 1887-07-21
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Ia1ln e Eagle
MAKING a GLASS EYE.
1T TAKES A GOOD MANY TRIALS
TO GET A PERFECT ONE.

Inc Principal Objection to Artinclai
Eyes Is the Difficulty of Expressing
Emotion Through Them-Secreas Of
the Manufacture Revealed.
The recent attempt in this city to substitute
a rabbits eye for one of human being calls
attention 10 a branch of commerce of which
little is generally known-the manufacture
of glass eyes. Articles have often been
written of their use and the amusement Incl
dental thereto, but of the manufacture Of the
artificial eye little has been said. The reason
for this lies in the fact that of the thousands
of those eyes used in this country the ma
jority come from Berlin, London and Paris,
those manufactured in the latter city being
especially artistic. In this city there is only
one firm that manufactures eyes to any large
extent The other dealers are simply i'm
pcrters. II is seldom that visitors are adj
mitted into the sacred precincts of the labora-
tory where the manufacture is carried on.
AN air of mystery surrounds the place, re-
rninding one of the days when the alchemist
was considered in league with the devil and
sorcery the means by which he worked.
1t requires years of experience before the
eye and hand of the artisan becomes suffi-
GENTLY skilled to perfectly initiate in glass the
human eye. The glass has to be especially
prepared, and the secret of this preparation is
only known to the workman. As the eye is
not susceptible of actual measurement, the
size as well as the color must depend upon the
skin of the maker.
IL TIE woRKMEN'S HANDS.
In making an artificial eye the glass passes
through the hands of three workmen. These
men sit before small work benches hidden by
a solid board fence or railing. Underneath,
one foot rests upon q treadle which works a
small bellows. Directly in front of them is
an ordinary gas jet with small sheet iron
cover, having an opening at the top like the
chute of a wheat elevator. By the aid Of the
bellows this is converted into small bias.
furnace. The intensity of the heat is shown
by the blue color of the flame that spouts
from the mouth of the chute. On each side
of the furnance is small cushion about five
inches high.
Taking hollow glass cylinder about the
size and length of an ordinary lead pencil, the
workman turns on the gas, and, resting his
elbows upon these cushions, begins opera
tions by holding the end of the tube in the
flame. Then, by gently blowing, aided by
considerable manipulation, he produces upon
the end of the tube cone resembling in color
the fine French china. This is to represent
the white of the eye.
This cone, still attached to the long stem, is
now turned over 10 the second workman. he
places the point before the flame, and picking
up a long. slender stick, he begins to work on
the extreme tip of the cone. This slender
stick is enamel, and looks like the cat gut
string of a bass viol that had been vanished.
Near at hand are all the principal colors of
the human iris in these slender sticks OF
enamel To produce the intermediate hues,
or any distinct popularity, two of the sticks
are held in the flame and twrled around until
third stick of the desired color is produced.
Uniting the white tip of the cone with the
stick of enamel under the flame, the tip dis
appears, and in its place comes the rounded
outer surface of the eye with dark spot rep
resenting the basis of the coloring matter, or
iris
PERFECTING THE IRIS.
The cone has now assumed the shape Of an
acorn inverted, the white spot where the nut
was attached to the shell forming the iris.
Different sticks of enamel are now used as
the workmen endeavor to perfect the iris as
nearly as possible like that of the uninjured
eve of the customer, whom lie visits every
few moments in an adjoining room. During
this process the acorn shaped shell is rapidly
twirled around and the enamel is pecked in,
emitting sparks under the flame like the
flashes of diamond under a bright light.
The pupil is finally placed in the center of the
IRIS by darker hue of the enamel. and over
this the transparent surface, or cornea, is
placed.
The eye is now placed in the hands of the
last workman He finds upon the glass stem
the perfect eye 1t is his business to fit the
inner surface and edges to the stump of the
optic nerve left in the wearer's empty socket
BY examining the stump and trying on an
assorted collection of samples the size is ar
rived at The workman takes his place be
fore the blast furnace. The globe is halved
the part attached. to the eye having an irregu
lar edge and inner surface to correspond with
the cavity it is to fill The eye is next put il
small iron receptacle and covered again
placed before the flame to temper it, and
when taken out is a complete artificial eye
If the stump of the lost eye is large and
moves freely, the glass eye viii work in uni
son with the other one, especially if the fit il
good. If the stump is poor, the eye remains
II the fixed and staring position which is the
source of so much amusement to everybody
but the victim Sometimes half dozen eyes
are made before the size and color can b.
obtained The length of time required il
from one 10 two hourS.-New York " olld.